The Einstein-Szilard Refrigerators - Further References and Notes

Because of Scientific American's publishing format, I was unable to
provide full references and acknowledgments in the article. In the
interests of scholarship, and in order to thank the many people who helped
me, I am providing that information
here. -- Gene Dannen

Version 1.0 - December 16, 1996
Version 1.1 - December 23, 1996 - Added or corrected items are indicated with
a
Version 1.2 - May 25-30, 1997 - Included information about translated editions.
Version 1.3 - October 3, 1997 - Updated information on translated
editions. Added 2 notes indicated with a
double

Translated Editions and News Coverage

The full article is not available on the Web in any language.
But it also has been published in these translated editions of
Scientific American:

For providing further information, in response to the published
article, I am especially grateful to Karl D. Stephan and Detlef
Lorenz.

Bibliography

As stated in the article, little information about the
Einstein-Szilard collaboration beyond the patents themselves was
thought to survive. The correspondence in the Einstein Archives, the
most extensive known source, was almost opaque without some
"Rosetta Stone" of additional context. I hope that my
article has provided this context.

Previously published sources about the Einstein-Szilard
refrigerators include the following books, articles, and video
(in chronological order):

1. Ronald W. Clark, Einstein: The Life and Times (New York: World
Publishing, 1971), p 325.

Although Szilard did not publish his solution to the problem of
Maxwell's Demon until 1929, he conceived the idea -- as I stated in
the article -- soon after completing his dissertation in 1922. See,
for example, Weart and Szilard page 11.

The information from Bernard T. Feld about the Berlin newspaper
article comes from my interview with Feld, May 14, 1982. See also
Bernard T. Feld, "Leo Szilard, Scientist for All Seasons," Social
Research 51, no. 3 (Autumn 1984):675-690.

The terms of the agreement between Szilard and Einstein are
preserved in a letter from L. Szilard to A. Einstein, April 1, 1927;
Einstein Archives #35-567, unpublished.

Albert Korodi was born Albert Kornfeld; he took the Hungarian
name Korodi in 1950. He provided me with information through both interviews
and correspondence. Tape-recorded interviews were conducted on my
behalf by Henry Throop in Budapest on May 4 and May 20, 1993. A
third interview, not recorded, was conducted on my behalf by Carol
Paulson in Budapest on November 13, 1994. In addition, Korodi
corresponded with me at length from July to December 1993 and read a
draft of the article.

All information from AB Electrolux comes from the files of AB
Electrolux in Stockholm, for which I am especially indebted to
Helene Jonsson and Bj&oumlrn Lindström. The quotation from the American
patent attorney about Einstein's dual citizenship is from: W. T.
Hedlund to Platen-Munters Refrigerating System, December 19, 1927,
unpublished, courtesy of AB Electrolux, Stockholm.

Additional information on Szilard's income from the A.E.G. comes
from L. Szilard to E. P. Wigner, September 29, 1940; Szilard
Papers 21/4; unpublished.

References to an Einstein-Szilard bank account can be found in: L.
Szilard to A. Einstein, January 28 and October 12, 1929; Einstein
Archives #35-582 and #35-585, unpublished.

The full citation for the A.E.G. final report is:
Kornfeld and Bihaly, "Entwicklungsarbeiten an einer
Kompressions-Kältemaschine mit
Wanderfeld-Flüssigkeitsmotor," 16
August 1932; A.E.G. Technischer Bericht Nr. 689, unpublished
typescript, only known copy courtesy Albert Korodi. (According to
Dr. Peter Strunk of the AEG Firmenarchiv in Frankfurt, all
information about the Einstein-Szilard refrigerators in the A.E.G.'s
files was destroyed in WWII.)

But the AEG Firmenarchiv was mistaken. The publication of the German
translation of my article has produced further information. Detlef
Lorenz, of DaimlerBenz Forschung und Technik Berlin, informed me
that Technischer Bericht 689 was indeed in the possession of AEG.
This forgotten document, whose connection to Einstein and Szilard was
unrecognized, is now in the collection of the Deutsches
Technikmuseum.